The Oppenheimer Report 7/31/17

For the last several weeks on my radio show Lyrical Workers, I’ve played a number of requests, and I was amazed by the number of songs I'd never heard. The premise of the show is that I am trying to learn more about songs that are well written, and I enthusiastically encourage other people’s selections to expand my knowledge. I don’t always love their choices, but I always learn something. I put a request out on Facebook a few weeks ago, asking for songs that remind the listener of a special moment in time, or an era in their lives. A lot of people replied. One man requested a song that reminded him of his break up with his first love. A fellow singer songwriter came up with a several great artists that were new to me, and one of my songwriting colleagues requested “Juke Box Heroes” by Foreigner, joking  that the song was the story of his life. There are literally hundreds of songs that conjure up happy or sad memories for me. Whenever I hear “Satisfaction” by The Rolling Stones it triggers the happy memory of driving across the Peace Bridge with my mom in her ’69 Buick convertible, top down and rockin’. When I hear the song “Daniel” by Elton John, I remember a girl friend who died when we were teens. She used to come and visit me while I was working summers at a local hot dog stand, and that song was often playing on the radio. Like the songs I write, every tune is a memory; a whistle stop on the crooked journey of my life.

“Encumbered by my own stiff fines/ Noted in calendars of wasted time/ I check the mirrors for the dangers signs/ As destiny, walks its crooked line..”

Perspective. I could use a little of that today. Some days it just seems as if I can’t get out of my own way, and a little perspective would go a long way to evening out my wildly undulating mood swings. Shauna is still very sick, and after three visits to the eye doctors and three weeks of medication, the eye condition has improved but is not cured. Yesterday was a particularly challenging day. Shauna had a fever, and it was one of a handful of beautiful days this summer. We had plans to spend it together outdoors. For anyone who suffers from an autoimmune disorder, as Shauna has for over 25 years, you will understand that this can be dispiriting. We decline so many social engagements, because she’ll have a blindside Crohn’s attack, or be racked with pain and unable to get ready. Then, there are life’s sucker punches. Last Thursday night, while I was doing my show at the station, I got a message from Shauna; her mom was once again at the hospital in Toronto. She was kept overnight and released, but we were understandably concerned. At the time, we had no idea how serious her injury was. E.T had gone next door, just before her caregiver was to leave, to see the neighbor’s very young Golden Retriever. Excited to see her, the large dog jumped up on her and knocked her off her feet. A 92 year-old woman, recently recovered from a broken neck, Ethel was immediately rushed to the hospital in an ambulance to see if anything was broken. She was sore, and at the time could not stand without assistance, but thankfully, tests revealed that nothing was broken. It will be weeks before we know for sure if she is all right.

That’s life, right? Whether it’s kids, or elders, or just some ill-timed dumb luck house-related catastrophe, we all deal with illness, disability, and stress. Lately, my capacity to deal with simple day-to-day problems has been compromised, and I am ashamed of my inability to cope with what. My anxiousness is amplified when I watch the seemingly endless erosion of America’s international reputation, thanks to our Twit-tweeter-In-Chief, and the increasingly irresponsible media, bent on spinning his shenanigans to the left and right of the truth. Though I am thankful for my good fortune, and cognizant of my obligation to pay it forward, I sometimes become discouraged by my impotence to make things better. I have recently revisited and re-worked a song I wrote almost 30 years ago, entitled “Everyman’s Blues”. The chorus reminds me that this is not a new feeling for me.

“The rock gets harder to push uphill, 
And I’ve just about had my fill,

I’ve got the Everyman’s Blues.”

     - Written by Jamie Oppenheimer c 2017 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED